Things Change

"Yeah. That's good advice. I'll definitely do that."

"So I'm not as dumb as I look, am I?" Bill replied with a little smile of his own that made him wince from the pain it caused.

Jared laughed again before heading to the bedroom as Bill said, "I need some more aspirin!"

He and Jaclyn texted off and on the rest of the day and finally stopped when she mentioned she had to get up at 5am to go run and still get to work by 8 o'clock.

"Same here, but I'm taking tomorrow off. Someone ran me into the dirt this morning."

"Ha! I'm the one who got humbled, so that's why I'll be back at it again tomorrow."

"You're pretty amazing, Jaclyn," he texted with a smiley emoji.

"No, that's you, Jared. But you just made me feel amazing—again—by telling me that."

"Goodnight, beautiful."

"Goodnight, handsome!"

In spite of being wound up over the new woman in his life, Jared was out in a few minutes and slept like a rock until his alarm went off at zero-six the next morning.

Right after morning formation, the 'top', the name Marines affectionally called their master sergeants (but NEVER their first sergeants the way the Army did) asked him to step into the office.

The group ordnance officer, and LDO captain with 24 years on active duty, was also sitting there. LDO's were limited duty officers meaning they'd been enlisted Marines for a number of years then become warrant officers. After making chief warrant officer-3, one could apply for the LDO program, and if accepted, be promoted directly to the rank of captain. And that's exactly what this very old captain had done.

"The cap'n and I have talking, Sgt. Quinn, and we both think you've got enough on the ball to maybe be a warrant officer in a few more years," the 'top' said.

"Wow. That's a real surprise, Top."

The captain chimed in and said, "I wish someone had taken an interest in me when I was your age. I did okay, all things considered, but who knows? Maybe I'd have made warrant officer earlier or hell, maybe even gotten a degree and become a regular commissioned officer. I'd be a lieutenant colonel now instead of a captain, but that ship has sailed."

The captain paused then said, "For me."

He hadn't been asked a question, so Sgt. Quinn didn't respond.

"We know you've got three years of college under your belt, and we wanted to make sure you're aware of all of your options," the master sergeant with 22 years in himself, said.

"I have recently thought about getting out and finishing school and maybe going to OCS," Jared replied.

"Why get out?" the captain with the gray hair around his temples asked. "You heard of the MECEP program?"

"I have, sir."

MECEP stood for Marine Enlisted Commissioning Education Program and while one need not have any college to apply, the more credits one had, the less time the Marine Corps had to pay a Marine to go to college. Those who were accepted were on active duty, drew full pay and allowances, and had their tuition and books paid in full.

"The application window is opening up soon. You need to go see the career planner and ask how to go about applying. Or just read the order yourself."

He stared at the young sergeant then asked him directly, "Are you interested?"

Jared had a flurry of thoughts, many of them including Jaclyn, but this wasn't the time or place for them.

"I am, sir."

"Then get busy," the top told him, a little smile forming at the corners of his mouth.

"Will do, Top."

"Keep me posted, Sgt. Quinn," the captain told him.

"Aye, aye, sir," the sergeant responded, waiting for an indication he was dismissed.

When he left the office, Bill grabbed him immediately.

"Wow. Jared Quinn getting his ass chewed first thing Monday morning. What the hell did you do?"

Rather than mention the conversation he'd just had, Jared quietly said, "You don't want to know."

"That bad, huh?"

Jared smiled but didn't respond before going over to his work station where two lance corporals, the only people he'd ever had work for him, were testing ejection racks. He looked around and saw the staff sergeant he reported to and thought, "In two more years that'll be me. And then I'll have two sergeants and a half dozen people working for me like he does."

Then he saw the 'gunny', an E-7 with 15 years in and realized he'd eventually be him with two staff sergeants and maybe two dozen junior Marines.

"Then somewhere around 20 I'd be the Top sitting in an office all day doing Lord only knows what."

He knew the top did something, but he rarely left the office and never seemed to get involved in anything going on in the shop. So 20 years and maybe 30 Marines indirectly under him. But as a second lieutenant in the infantry or artillery, he'd have around 40 working directly for him. And as a captain, somewhere around 200 in a rifle company. Or at least that's what he'd been told.

And it was those thoughts that convinced him for sure that he wasn't ever going to re-enlist and stay in the ordnance field. But after the pep talk he just had, this whole commissioning thing seemed even more appealing than it had just a few days earlier, and the first person he wanted to talk about it with just happened to be a beautiful, older woman he was sleeping with and maybe even...

"Jaclyn? Hi. Is it okay if I stop by tonight?" he asked as soon as she answered the phone that evening.

"I was beginning to wonder if I'd hear from you," she said, trying not to sound overly concerned. But she'd never known a man who kept his promises, so she felt like it wasn't unreasonable to be a little worried.

"Sorry. I wanted to call or at least text all day, but with you at work, I decided I'd wait."

"No, it's fine. And yes, you can come over."

There was a little pause then Jared heard. "Anytime."

"I'll be there as soon as I can, okay?"

"Okay. See you then."

As he drove to her house Jared realized he'd never felt like this before. When he decided to enlist it was to get away. It wasn't planned or even well thought out. He just wanted out and the military seemed perfect. But now he was...what? 'Excited' was the only word that came to mind. He was excited about actually planning the rest of his life. And as important as a career was, he was even more excited about the possibility of having someone to share his life with.

By the time he got to her house, he calmed himself down a little and lowered his expectations. Again, he reminded himself he barely knew this woman, and yet the moment she opened the door he found himself feeling like being with her was the most natural thing in the world.

"Hi," he said as he kissed her hello.

Jaclyn smiled happily as she also said hello.

"Would you like a drink?"

"No. I don't think so," Jared told her. "I was hoping we could just talk."

"Uh-oh. Already?" Jaclyn said, trying her best to sound like she was teasing.

"What?" a befuddled Jared replied until he caught her drift.

"Oh. No. It's definitely not that."

"Then yes, we can talk," she informed him, now feeling much better.

"You grew up in a Marine family, right?"

Jared knew that already, but for some reason he was a little nervous.

"Well, let's see. I was born at the Naval Hospital here in Beaufort and have lived her most of my life, so..."

Jaclyn's easy smile helped as Jared took a deep breath.

"Did you like it?"

"Yes. I actually loved it, and so did my mom."

She realized something was coming and asked why he was suddenly interested.

"Well, I had an interesting conversation with my OIC and NCOIC this morning."

Jaclyn knew that meant Officer in Charge and Non-commissioned Officer in Charge, so there was no need to ask what the acronyms meant.

"What about?"

"The MECEP program."

"Sorry. You just stumped me," she admitted, hearing one she didn't recognize.

Jared told her what it stood for then explained what had been said.

"So you'd be leaving Beaufort," she said, her voice now flat and dry.

"Yes. But not until mid-August. And I'd be getting out next February regardless."

Jared could see by the look on her face that Jaclyn was either upset or disappointed...or both.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Trying her best to be supportive, she said, "Oh. Nothing. I'm...I'm really happy for you."

"I haven't even applied yet. But after hearing what they said, I got pretty excited about the possibility and what it could mean, and..."

"No. I...I understand. That's really wonderful, Jared."

Her words were meant to convey sincerity, and as much as she really was happy for him, she understood this meant that she wasn't going to be a part of that future. And that realization brought back a huge wave of feelings from her marriage that had her stomach twisted in knots. On one level she knew it was absurd. They'd only just met and he certainly didn't owe her anything. And yet she felt so confident that he really cared about her. That he was...different.

Jaclyn wasn't even looking at him now, and although he still wasn't sure, Jared thought he understood.

"There's a reason I wanted to discuss this with you," he said in a calm, quiet voice.

"Yes. Of course," she replied, forcing herself to look at him as she tried to smile.

He stood up then walked around the coffee table that was separating them and asked if he could sit down.

"Sure," she told him without looking up.

He did sit, but he immediately pulled one leg up then turned her way.

"Jaclyn? I'm excited about this, but it's only one of two things I'm excited about."

Again, she made herself look at him, and this time, she saw a kind of compassion she'd never seen before as he stared into her eyes. Without asking, he reached over and took her hand then smiled at her.

"You're the other thing."

"Me?"

"Yes. You."

"I...I don't understand," she said as she looked away again.

"What don't you understand?"

"We just, you know, started seeing each other. And...and you're...you'll be leaving in a few months, so I'm not sure why..."

Jared reached out and gently touched her cheek and waited for her to look at him again. When she did, he smiled then continued explaining.

"You really can't tell that I'm crazy about you?"

Her heart leapt in spite of the sullen feeling that had taken hold of her.

"I...I'm not sure."

He softly ran his fingers along her other cheek then said, "Well, I am. I'm completely smitten with you, Jaclyn Frances. And while I know we just met and we just, you know..."

Feeling better, Jaclyn finally smiled in that 'yes, I know' kind of way.

"But I've never felt like this about anyone before."

He waited for her to really look at him then said, "Ever."

"I feel the same way about you, Jared," she told him with a look that explained everything.

"So I guess what I'm really asking is...if I did, you know, get accepted to go back to school for the last year, would you even consider, you know..."

"Going with you?" Jaclyn said, filling in the blank.

"Yes. Going with me."

She wanted to launch into a long dissertation about her trust issues and how fragile she felt. She wanted him to know that she was already falling in love with him but still worried sick that she was just another girl to him, and that only made her feel worse about herself. But there was an even stronger feeling; a feeling of wanting and needing to be loved—really loved, and it was that feeling that won out when she answered him.

"Whither thou goest, I will go," she told him, as tears welled up in her eyes. "If you really want me to."

"I do," he told her very quietly before leaning over and kissing her softly. "Now come here."

He slid closer and pulled her to him then put his arms around her and just held her for a good long while, and that was exactly what she needed.

"A lot can change in...six months," she said, also very quietly.

Jared was beginning to understand the depths of her past hurt, and although he'd never met her ex-husband, a part of him hated him for what he'd done to this amazing woman.

"Yes. Yes, it can," he agreed before letting go so he could look at her again.

When she did, he said, "Like us falling deeply into love."

"I love your optimism," she said, a little smile forming on her lips.

"And I love..."

Jaclyn's heart raced for a moment before Jared said, "So many things about you."

"May I ask you something?"

"Of course," Jared told her.

"By the time you finish school and OCS and TBS, do you know that I'll be 40 years old?"

"I thought you said you didn't care about the age difference?" a smiling Jared asked.

"I don't. At all. But I...I just need to know you've thought about that, and that you're..."

Jared reached up and placed a finger on her soft lips to shush her then leaned her way again and kissed her for several seconds.

"Does that answer your question?"

"Yes. Yes, it does," she whispered back.

"I sense a 'but' coming," Jared said playfully.

"Sorry. I just can't help it."

"Hey. I understand," her younger boyfriend assured her.

"I may need a little reassurance here and there. Along the way."

"I'll give you all the reassurance you need anytime you need it," he told her.

"Is...now a good time?" Jaclyn asked, a different kind of smile on her pretty face.

"Oh. You need...that kind...of reassurance."

"Uh-huh. Is that okay?"

"I'm a guy. Do you really have to ask?"

Jaclyn finally laughed then said, "Then come into my parlor!" as she stood up and took him back to her bedroom where he reassured not once but twice, followed by a long talk about many different things.

"So where would you go to school?" she asked.

"I was thinking back in my home state."

"Washington, right?"

"Yes. The University of Washington is going to be my first choice."

He put his forehead on hers until their eyes looked funny and said, "If that's okay with my beautiful girlfriend."

"As long as her very handsome boyfriend keeps reassuring her like this, she'll be okay with anything."

Jared laughed then got more serious.

"So when do I get to meet your parents? And what rank was your father?"

"Oh. Well, that could be anytime you like. And my dad was a sergeant major."

"Oh," Jared said, knowing how most sergeants major tended to be.

"He's not like that! I promise," Jaclyn told him as she looked at his worried face and smiled.

"If you say so."

Jaclyn laughed then said, "I do say so, and we could go over there for dinner this weekend if you'd like."

"I may need a little reassurance," Jared said as seriously as he could.

"Well, it just so happens that I love this kind of reassurance as much as you do," she told him very authoritatively.

"I uh, I kinda noticed," Jared replied in a way that made her ask what he meant by that.

"Well, you're rather...vocal. And kind of like a...a tiger. Or maybe a...tigress."

"See? I do love reassurance."

"Yes, you do, don't you?"

Jaclyn laughed and now felt even better than she had during their time together in Charleston as she put her arm over his chest and held him as close as she could.

"I wish I you could have met my parents," Jared said, surprising her in a touching way.

"That makes me so sad for you."

Rather than feel sorry for himself, Jared changed the subject.

"But as I said, I do have a roommate."

"I remember. And I want to meet him!" Jaclyn told him without hesitation.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea."

"I'm sure I'll like him."

"Let's see if I survive meeting your dad first, okay?"

"Oh, you will. And I promise you're going to like him."

"Well, I do like you. A lot."

"Yeah?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, I just happen to like you—a lot—too," Jaclyn told him, loving the playful banter. "But just to be safe, maybe keep the MECEP thing between us for awhile, okay?"

"Ah, okay. Not a big fan of officers. Got it. Forewarned is fair warned, right?"

Jaclyn looked at him then said, "You are scary smart, Jared Quinn."

"And you are...freaking gorgeous, Jaclyn Frances."

Jaclyn laid back down on his chest and smiled as she wished this feeling would never end while knowing that it would.

That Saturday evening, Jared shook hands with the man he'd been dreading meeting and found that he was quiet and well-spoken. In fact, had he not known the man was a retired Marine sergeant major, he'd never have guessed.

An even bigger surprise was how Dennis Frances didn't try to one-up the young Marine. He let him tell his 'war stories' and rarely came back with, "Yeah, that reminds of when I was your age or back in Iraq," or anything like that.

It didn't become clear why until much later when Jared realized that the 'Band of Brothers' bond was secondary to his being Jaclyn's father and deeply concerned about her making another huge mistake. And it didn't help that he was so much younger than her. Still, 'the sergeant major' only mentioned it once and when he did it was more of an oblique reference than a direct concern.

What wasn't a surprise was how warm and friendly Jaclyn's mother, Nancy, was. She was a petite woman who smiled easily and was as friendly as anyone Jared had ever met. She was also an excellent cook, and Jared was the beneficiary of her expertise as they ate the incredibly delicious rack of lamb she made for dinner.

They sat and talked for nearly two more hours after dinner, and just before they left, the retired sergeant major asked if he could talk to Jared alone.

"Of course," the younger man replied.

"I'm sure you can tell that I love my daughter very much."

"I can."

"I have to admit I had reservations about you, Jared. Strong reservations. But I'm a pretty good judge of character, and it's obvious you make my daughter happy."

He smiled then said, "Happier than I've seen her in...well...since she was in high school."

Knowing better than to jump back into the conversation before being asked, Jared continued listening respectfully as Jaclyn's father said the rest of what he had to say.

"You mentioned staying in."

"Oh, yes. I am thinking about it."

"Well, if you do, you really need to think about being a drill instructor, Jared. It's long, tough hours, but it's the ticket to advancement. So is recruiting duty, but I can't in good conscience recommend it to any hard-charging Marine. Like you."

Jared smiled but otherwise remained silent.

"Money isn't everything, but raising a family on a sergeant's pay is...challenging. You do well on the drill field and you'll make staff sergeant guaranteed. I went there as a sergeant already selected for staff sergeant and left a gunnery sergeant. Promoted meritoriously."

"That's incredible," Jared said knowing how very few Marine ever made E-7 meritoriously or ahead of their peers.

"So think about it. I'd be glad to make a call if you think it'd help."

"I appreciate that, Sergeant Major," Jared said, calling him by his retired rank for the first time. 'Sir' was out of the question, and 'Dennis' seemed wholly inappropriate.

"My daughter really likes you, son. Don't hurt her."

"I won't. You have my word."

The older man extended his hand and Jared shook it.

"Thank you for having me over tonight," he said.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Jared. And don't forget my advice."

"I won't."

And with that, he rejoined Jaclyn who was waiting for him while talking with her mother.

"Thank you dinner, Mrs. Frances. It was truly amazing."

"You're welcome, Jared, and please call me Nancy."

"I will," he promised, not able to say her name quite yet.

"So...what did you think?" Jaclyn asked once they were in his car.

"I like both of your parents a lot."

"Did my dad give you a speech or something?" she asked, dying to know what they talked about.

"No. Just some advice."

"Can you share?"

"He thinks I should become a drill instructor."